So a high PSA reading wouldnt tell me much. Thank you for supporting our work. Statins have a solid track record. The risks, as with all medicines, include possible side effects. Farage says family also targeted, Protesters demonstrate against barge set to house asylum seekers, Machete victim taunts blade-wielding gang which butchered him, Witness box not a soap box: Sturgeon slammed for ranting about Brexit, Chaos and flames spreads across France in violent protests, Wagner troops reportedly shoot down Russian 'special mission' plane, Crash site of Russian plane reportedly shot down by Wagner, New Yorkers weigh in on SCOTUS scrapping student loan forgiveness. Statin side effects: Weigh the benefits and risks - Mayo Clinic The best evidence we have comes from high-quality clinical trials in humans, which showed that statin drugs do not increase risk of cataract formation, reports Martin. This finding will aggravate many health professionals. But Im still not sure there isnt a reverse placebo effect [when you expect to suffer certain bad side-effects and you do] going on, so I may go back on them.. Many people who take statins experience no or very few side effects. Guidelines that doctors follow are based on this premise. The one time I think pills can be helpful is during short-term stress or traumatic situations, such as the loss of a loved one. Its possible for my patients and me, the problem is the "nocebo effect," but discounting the symptoms isn't helpful and doesn't make it any less real. Timothy Noakes, professor of exercise and sports science at the University of Cape Town, South Africa, has gone further: Focusing on an elevated blood cholesterol concentration as the exclusive cause of coronary heart disease is unquestionably the worst medical error of our time. She was put on statins in 2006 and all was fine for three years, but then she began to get the occasional bad cramp and pains in her left leg. What isnt widely understood is that by lowering your risk of developing infections, cancer and infectious diseases, high cholesterol can actually prolong life, so its not something we should lower with drugs without careful consideration. 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Foods to eat "I'm not [using them], and nobody else is, either," says Steven Nissen, MD, chairman of the department of cardiovascular medicine at the Cleveland Clinic. The authors were looking for two major outcomes: A Major Adverse Cardiovascular Event (known to cardiologists as MACE) and mortality. take Statins The researchers followed up the subjects for 2 to 6 years, on average. Please note the date of last review or update on all articles. These particles exist in a variety of distinct types, with perhaps the most well known being low density lipoproteins (LDL) and high density lipoproteins (HDL). Although statins benefit those most at risk for cardiovascular disease, many people have concerns about taking this class of drug. "That's more important than anything, because if plaque bursts it can cause a heart attack or stroke," she says. Sleeping medication knocks you out rather than sends you into a natural, deep sleep, so in the long term, pills can make you feel worse. Within two weeks, however, Dr Chand, who is now 60, began experiencing pains in his back and legs unlike anything hed suffered before. This is what it said about relying on studies done by drug companies testing their own products: It is now established that published pharmaceutical-industry-sponsored trials are more likely than non-industry-sponsored trials to report results and conclusions that favour a drug.. Writing in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, Australian science reporter Maryanne Demasi claims that doctors and patients are being misled about the true benefits and harms of these drugs. Far and away, the most common side effect of statins is muscle aching, also called myalgia. If you take one, you can expect your LDL cholesterol to drop by anywhere from 35% to 50% or more, depending on the type of statin you take and your dose, Nissen says. In other words, approximately 130 people need to take statins for a year to prevent just one unwanted health outcome, and 500 people have to take them to prevent a single death. There have even been recent calls for all males over 65 and females over 75 to be prescribed them. They also make you lose trust in your own ability to sleep naturally and cause unpleasant side effects, such as grogginess the next day, memory loss and confusion often in return for not very much more sleep. First, they stop the production of cholesterol in your body. Both ezetimibe and the PCSK9 antibody medications have been shown to lower the risk of heart attack and stroke. In reality some people with high LDL cholesterol may actually be at a low risk of heart disease and are therefore potentially treated unnecessarily. If you take one, you can expect your LDL cholesterol to drop by anywhere from 35% to 50% or more, depending on the type of statin you take and No content on this site, regardless of date, should ever be used as a substitute for direct medical advice from your doctor or other qualified clinician. Muscle pain is the most frequently reported statin side-effect (file picture). Youre better off making love two to three times a week and not just at weekends to maximise your chances of getting pregnant. But still, these misconceptions persist.. As I look at Table 1. in this study I find that 0.8 deaths are prevented after four years. Not only does it increase the risk of high blood pressure, stomach ulcers, irritable bowel syndrome and dizziness, but recent studies show that taken over a period of time these drugs also increase your risk of a heart attack by 11% with ibuprofen and 23% with Voltaren. Statin drugs are prescription medications that lower cholesterol and prevent cardiovascular disease, which is the leading cause of death in the United States. Read surprising new results. From choosing baby's name to helping a teenager choose a I have serious concerns about the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test. Maybe this is right, but I have a different perspective for two reasons. The debate more commonly is how do we define high-risk. Statins and treated by not too invasive means. Saved Stories. So its vital to get tested by your GP if you suspect a food intolerance rather than just cutting out a food group like dairy, which can have long-term health consequences. But sometimes making lifestyle adjustments isnt enough to reduce your cholesterol. The important thing is to look at the strongest evidence and talk to your health care provider about any concerns you may have.. The FDA hasnt concluded that statins cause those problems. Many doctors are unaware that statins can actually raise Lp(a) levels. And many drugs, including antibiotics, tranquillizers and sleeping tablets, are prescribed unnecessarily. Statins are a type of medication that doctors prescribe to lower levels of 'bad' cholesterol and reduce the risks of heart attack and stroke. The latest claims come at a time of considerable controversy over statins. For years there were clear cut-offs -- numbers your doctor looked for. Like all medications, statins can cause side effects. At last count, over 23 million Americans swallow atorvastatin daily to lower LDL cholesterol. In monitoring people taking statins for decades, weve found that theyre safe and most people tolerate them well without any problems. Taylor, F. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, January 2013. By that measure, everyone over the age of 75 should be on a statin! The authors of this meta-analysis reviewed 21 clinical trials involving over 130,000 participants. June 27, 2023. Research indicates that statin drugs do not induce diabetes in someone who isnt already nearing a diabetes diagnosis. But as a new review highlights, statins can often cause crippling side-effects and may actually result in more harm than good. This research focused on people over 55 years of age. An investigation by Good Health has found that the claim that statins are beneficial for almost everyone and the latest claim that they have zero side-effects is based on evidence provided by the drug manufacturers themselves. And there is an element of truth to this, but the reality is quite different than you may have been led to believe. A hot weather plan is essential to staying healthy, Young men with prostate cancer: Socioeconomic factors affect lifespan, Talking to your doctor about your LGBTQ+ sex life. Memory loss or confusion and neuropathy (a pins and needles sensation) have also been reported, though they seem to be rare and more likely at very high doses. In the statin risk vs. benefits discussion I commonly have with my patients, the benefits are clear. Even if their cholesterol levels are good and their blood pressure is under control, they may be prescribed statins just in case. This is called primary prevention. 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Studios in Los Angeles, Men deny murdering council worker in her Liverpool back garden when gunman burst into her house and gunned her down in botched hit job, 'Our baby died because doctors wouldn't listen': Heartbroken mother sues NHS hospital over infant death saying medics ignored her pleas for a C-section', Man admits killing 'beautiful' Italian couple found dead in flat where 20-year-old girlfriend was visiting her partner for Christmas, Feel like you're being watched? How well do statins prevent these serious cardiovascular complications? Journal of the American Medical Association, November 2013. IBD and LGBTQ+: How it can affect sexual health, Mud runs: Dirty, challenging, next-level fun, Wildfires: How to cope when smoke affects air quality and health. How good are statins for preventing heart attacks in primary prevention? Now the only people who automatically get a statin based only on their LDL are those whose number is very high (190 mg/dL or higher). Truth:In clinical trials, statins appear to accelerate a diagnosis of adult-onset diabetes because they cause a slight elevation in blood sugar. The result was that when the CTT studies said the risk of any other sideeffects was low, it relied on the published results of statin trials by individual pharmaceutical companies. The crucial study that has influenced NICEs proposal was done by the Cholesterol Treatment Trialists (CTT) Collaboration and published in The Lancet in 2012. Doctors consider high cholesterol a modifiable risk factor that people can change through their behavior and by using medication. Dr Uchenna Okoye, cosmetic dentist at London Smiling. Statins and Diabetes: What You Should Know | CDC So are the drug company trials that found virtually no difference between side-effects from a placebo and a statin trustworthy? But what worries the worlds top statin experts is that none of them has been able to get access to that drug company data. Take Statins Plus, get a FREE copy of the Best Diets for Cognitive Fitness. Purestock/Thinkstock. If your levels were above them, then your doctor was supposed to prescribe a statin plus lifestyle changes (healthy eating, limiting unhealthy fats, and being more active). High Blood Pressure? Statins What it means is that 77 people would have to take statins more than 4 years in order to prevent 1 heart attack. Heart disease stubbornly remains one of the biggest killers in the UK, where there are 7m people living with the condition. If you are over 75 and do not have ASCVD, ask your doctor whether starting a statin makes sense for you. All of which further perpetuates the hesitance of health care professionals to incorporate the measure into their assessments. What if you have had statin side effects? eGuide to Cholesterol Control & Heart Health. More blog posts from R. Todd Hurst, MD, FACC, FASE, Not All Blocked Arteries Should Be Fixed. Some statins can decrease your LDL (bad) cholesterol by 50% or more. According to media reports, a recent study by British researchers into 29 clinical trials for statin drugs allegedly concluded that except for an elevated risk of developing Type 2 diabetes and/or seeing liver enzymes We are no longer accepting comments on this article. WebFor this reason, your doctor may prescribe a statin (blood cholesterol-lowering medicine) to reduce your risk of heart disease. Cholesterol Not only am I a very reluctant taker of tablets, I was also a very reluctant prescriber as a GP and the cost of my prescriptions was consistently 40% lower than other doctors in my local area. In the end, the costs far outweigh the benefits. Its so common to hear people say theyre cutting out dairy, but as a woman Id never do this to try and lose weight or because I had a hunch I was intolerant. Most people who take 'The CTT data is not accessiblepublicly.. 29/08/2019 Dear Norman, Re: The need for an independent reappraisal of the effects of statins Statins are the most widely prescribed class of drugs in the UK. Coming off the pills is also very challenging because you experience a worsening of your insomnia, which is one reason sufferers often continue taking them even when theyre no longer working. Professor Baigent said that in fact, the CTT database did not have any information about nonfatal statin side-effects. Statins Working with a therapist, on the other hand, helps you develop strategies to overcome and ward off depression and will have a longer lasting impact than a tablet. We reviewed all the studies that had been done, and found that the most rigorous studies show that statins do not commonly cause memory loss. Be sure and ask about the risks compared to the benefits and also if there are alternatives that would make sense for you.